As media industry watchers discussed the impact of a potential recession, senior cable officials considered whether they saw a boom or a doldrums ahead as they attended an investor conference on Wednesday.
Dave Watson, chairman and CEO of Comcast Cable, argued that small and medium-sized businesses escaped the COVID-19 crisis, only to face inflationary pressures while another economic crisis awaited them.
“What we did in the early stages of the pandemic, we are going to work with customers during a difficult time. This is a good cable trademark. We respect that. And if things get tough with fuel and other issues, we’ll keep that in mind,” Watson said at the televised MoffettNathanson Media and Communications Summit.
He was quick to add that Comcast Cable will continue to utilize the digital transformation of the video industry, which is being accelerated by a coronavirus pandemic. These include Comcast’s growing subscribers on Peacock’s streaming platform, selling content online, and soliciting transactional videos where users buy content for a fee, despite the media giant continuing to lose traditional subscribers.
“We said we would lose money as expected. We are not going to look for unprofitable video relationships. “It will push the video,” Watson warned. But that was when Comcast Cable reinvented the video experience for its diverse market.
He noted that Comcast offers Flex, its integrated streaming platform, and hardware to strengthen its overall customer base. “Today we are adding Flex, and the video attachment rate is not far off if we add Flex and linear from where we were before the pandemic,” Watson said.
Pay-TV subscribers have been declining around the world for years. On May 17, Leichtman Research released a report indicating that the country’s highest-paid television providers lost a total of 1.95 million subscribers in the first quarter of this year, compared with a year ago.
Speaking at an investor conference, Altice USA CEO Dexter Goay argued that the economic downturn would not necessarily lead to a loss of subscribers due to the long-term appeal of high-speed Internet to customers.
“It’s fair to say that we believe this product, a broadband product, is evidence of a recession. You will likely give up hot water or electricity before you give up your broadband network. “So if we go into a recession that people are potentially asking for, we don’t think that’s going to slow down activity.”
He added that any recession could delay consumers’ upgrades to higher levels of products, but would not reduce broadband usage.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
